


Shoes Far Too Big

by CamsthiSky



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman and Robin (Comics), DCU
Genre: Angst, Dick Grayson is Batman, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-11
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2019-01-31 21:14:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12690339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CamsthiSky/pseuds/CamsthiSky
Summary: Damian has a panic attack and Dick doesn't really know what he's doing.





	Shoes Far Too Big

**Author's Note:**

> anonymous asked: Prompt- Damian has a panic attack, but Dick is there to help

“Look at me,” Dick says to Damian, making sure his voice is calm and steady, even though on the inside there’s a pain in his own chest. Something that tightens more and more the longer Damian wheezes and keeps Dick’s hand clenched in his own. It looks like Damian’s about to shake apart, and if he does, Dick’s sure that he’ll shake apart with it. He tries again. “Damian, look at me.”

Damian finally— _finally_ —meets Dick’s eyes, and they’re blown wide with panic.

“You’re okay,” Dick tells him. “You’re okay. You’re safe. We’re here in the penthouse. You, me, Alfred. We’re all here and we’re all okay. Do you understand me?”

Damian nods jerkily, but the wheezing doesn’t subside. If anything, it gets worse, and if Dick just knew what had  _triggered_  it, maybe he’d be okay to handle this.

But he doesn’t. He’d walked out of his room to find Damian crumpled on the floor of the living room, curled up in a ball as he struggled to make his lungs work. Dick had immediately  _moved._  Gotten Damian into a sitting position. One that would allow better access to his lungs. But now, as he sits here, Dick just doesn’t know what to  _do._

God, he wishes Bruce were here. As emotional stunted as Bruce was, he still knew better than anyone how to handle panic attacks.

But Dick’s too new at this. At filling Bruce’s shoes. At caring for a  _goddamn child._  He’s trying, but sometimes he thinks that trying isn’t enough.

“Okay,” Dick says, his hands hopefully steadying enough as one rests on Damian’s shoulder and the other crushes Damian’s small hand. “I want you to breathe with me, okay?” He exaggerates sucking in a breath and lets it out just as slow. Doing that several times before Damian finally seems to catch on and tries it with him.

The first attempt ends with Damian choking on his own breath. The second goes marginally better, but not by much, Damian’s still breathing too fast, and at this rate, he’s going to pass out. Right in front of Dick.

“In,” Dick says softly, squeezing Damian’s hand, “and out. In. Out. Good, Damian.”

Eventually, Damian manages to get his breathing under control, and he stops looking Dick in the eye. Doesn’t let go of his hand, though, but Dick thinks that’s more concerning than anything. Damian’s never one to let himself seek comfort. Especially not in moments he believes might be weakness.

“How about we watch a movie?” Dick says, tugging Damian to his feet and pulling him towards the couch. Dick settles down next to him, and plays whatever movie he’d left in the DVD player—The Incredibles. Dick looks over at Damian. “This okay?”

Damian nods, just a beat too slow. “Yes,” he says softly, his eyes trained on the tv. “This is good.”

And so they watch the movie, and they don’t talk about what just happened. They’ll have to, soon, even. Because Dick doesn’t want Damian to have to experience something like that again, and Dick wants to know what he needs to do if it  _does_  happen. But for now, they watch Pixar movies until it’s well past time to patrol. Until the sun rises.

And neither of them sleep.


End file.
